Quad Makes A Hit at MLB All-Star Game

PEWAUKEE, WI—The program might have been the only winner at the 2002 Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star game.

Quad/Graphics bowed at its fourth consecutive midsummer classic, the number of years it has been printing the official game program. What added extra significance, from the printer's standpoint, was that the game was played in Miller Park in Milwaukee, which is about a Richie Sexson home run away from Quad's Pewaukee headquarters.

"Since the game was in Milwaukee, there was an extra sense of pride for Quad to print the programs," explains Gavin Taylor, Sussex, WI, plant customer service manager, on the company's Website. "A local printer producing the programs. Just another way to get us national attention."

With team rosters not finalized until July 2 and the programs needed by July 4, the venerable printer was put to the test. According to Quad, the programs' covers (all five versions) each had spot UV coating and were printed custom web at its West Allis, WI, facility on June 26. Quad's Sussex plant then received the covers July 2.

Save Situation

The 240-page programs, minus the rosters, were printed in Sussex June 30. Final rosters were announced 8 p.m. Central Time on July 2, and Quad went to press by midnight.

MLB, based in New York City, supplied the roster files to Quad's Lexington facility across town. Page work was completed in Saratoga in two hours, and the files were sent back to Lexington over Quad/Net for MLB's approval. Approved files were transmitted to Sussex at 9 p.m.

By noon on July 3, 50,000 programs were ready for distribution. The remaining 75,000 programs were finished by 7 p.m. that evening.

"Major League Baseball was very pleased with the product we produced, especially considering the turnaround time," Taylor says.

MLB also taps Quad for print production for League Championship Series and World Series programs, as well as Little League magazine.

Value Add

Quad was able to provide value-added services, including chauffeurs who personally delivered programs to area hotels; the loan of a parcel/direct truck to the Milwaukee Brewers, so the organization could use it to store programs before they were sold. And when MLB short-shipped itself 500 books, Quad was able to produce the necessary quantity in under four hours.

Perhaps MLB should have consulted Quad regarding an on-demand product. The game itself ended in a 7-7 tie after 12 innings because the National League and American League managers ran out of pitchers.